One of the tactics the Salvadoran Guerilla would use when things weren’t going their way during the UN sponsored negotiations in Mexico City was to sabotage the electric grid in the affluent neighborhoods in San Salvador. 

With the electricity out so were the traffic lights—youngsters would step-in to direct traffic for coins drivers tossed to them. Lupita’s crew of three chavitos would dart into the street to collect the coins that fell on the street.

Sometimes I would catch up with them. 

One morning after the traffic had eased I see them in a huddle counting their coins. I had a department store shopping bag which Lupita quickly notices saying “Ya regresates, que traes ahi!?” In there were 4 sets of running shoes, a collection of pastel colors, a whistle, a waist bag, chocolate bars, some bilingual story books. She used the pastels to paint a clown face on herself.

The photo was taken at a busy intersection, up the street from el Novo Hotel where I stayed.

In the photo she has stopped traffic to her back, stopped traffic to her left side, stopped traffic with her right hand, and is about to direct traffic with her left hand.